


the last autumn leaf

by razzledazzle27



Series: kidge prompts that are supposed to be short [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Acxa & Keith (Voltron) are Siblings, F/M, Flustered Pidge (Voltron), Keith & Lance (Voltron) Friendship, Lance (Voltron) is a Good Friend, leaf deadass is a survivor, not kidding they can read each other's minds, the tree literally sits there while pidge pours her heart out to it if that isnt a big mood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-20
Updated: 2018-11-20
Packaged: 2019-08-26 19:25:03
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,329
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16687513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/razzledazzle27/pseuds/razzledazzle27
Summary: "When my leaf falls, everything is going to change. For better or worse.And I’ve never been more scared."





	the last autumn leaf

**Author's Note:**

> Prompt: the last autumn leaf on a tree

The last leaf on the autumn tree fluttered in the harsh wind but still clung to the branch tightly. It was the last thing keeping the tree from nakedness in the upcoming winter. The only thing keeping it from complete vulnerability. Pidge could relate to the tree.

 

She would sit beneath it every now and then if they had training breaks. The tree was rooted in front of the Garrison, so she’d just wander out and think. Think about things she’d prefer not to think about. Also known as, Keith.

 

It was year three of her infatuation with him, and she could barely take it anymore. Pidge told herself that if another week went by without him noticing it, she’d let it go. The promise extended to a month. And so on. She couldn’t stop herself no matter how much she wanted to.

 

The leaf prevented the tree from a bare winter, not too different from the thought eating away at Pidge’s mind, restraining her from revealing herself to the team.

 

Doubt.

 

What if she says it at the wrong time? What if the others overheard? What if Keith turned her down? Oh, god, don’t get her started on Acxa…

 

All in all, she was a mess. One particular day, Pidge walked out onto the field in her coat and scarf and plopped herself at the base of the tree, watching her visible breath float higher into the sky. She looked up at the tree, staring at the single leaf as it rippled in the breeze.

 

“You’re lucky, you know that?” she asked the tree, leaning against its trunk. “When that leaf falls, not much about you is changing. Your foliage will just have all fallen. Weird though. You’ll barely change physically, but at the same time, you’ll be different than you were before, more exposed, more open.” Pidge sighed. “When my leaf falls, everything is going to change. For better or worse.

 

And I’ve never been more scared.”

 

That night, Coleen came to the Garrison with her homemade lasagna.  It was her rendition of a ‘thank you for saving the planet’ dinner, which Pidge didn’t know existed. In any event, her mother sat down the paladins and served them the food, which Hunk, then Shiro and the rest of the team practically inhaled. Allura was a bit nervous to try it, but Lance happily ate his meal to encourage her, so eventually, she was chowing down on the lasagna too. Pidge sighed as she halfheartedly chewed her dinner. Someone was missing from the chair next to her. Again.

 

Then, a tingly feeling shot down her spine. Her eyes flicked to the threshold a little too enthusiastically. The pumping Pidge felt in her heart increased to at least 5 beats per tick.

 

He actually showed up to a meal. He was eating for the first time in days.

 

“Well! Look who finally decided to show up!” Lance spoke fondly, but his words still had a teasing undertone. Keith looked down, leaning against the doorway, with bags under his eyes, and Lance’s expression softened. “Hey, wait, are you okay?” Hunk rose from his seat, took two long strides towards Keith, and enveloped the Black Paladin in a worried hug. Keith still didn’t react. Lance stood as well, concern etched across his face. “Keith?”

 

Though she didn’t physically do anything, Pidge was just as worried as her teammates, maybe more. A million different situations or reasons for Keith’s behaviour ran through Pidge’s mind, she herself trying to decide which one was the truth. Just then, Krolia stood from the table. “I should get going. Thank you for dinner, Coleen.” Pidge’s mother nodded a bit nervously as the Blade left the room. As Pidge’s parents exchanged confused glances, Keith’s eyes followed her as she departed.

 

Hunk released Keith from his embrace and Lance was in his place two spilt-ticks later. The Cuban held Keith’s shoulders at an arm's length, the two of them sharing a mental conversation. If Pidge could read their minds, the dialogue probably would’ve gone like this:

 

_Lance: What happened? Does it have something to do with your mom?_

_Keith: Later._

 

Lance looked sceptical, but he let go of Keith’s shoulders and headed back to his seat. Allura threw a confused look at Lance, but he just kissed her forehead and shook his head, and she somehow understood his initial message and nodded.

 

Keith wearily slumped into the chair next to Pidge. As everyone else continued with their conversations, Pidge prayed she wouldn’t embarrass herself and put her hand on his shoulder. He looked to her, purple eyes filled with an emotion Pidge couldn’t decipher. “Do you wanna talk about it?’ He looked surprised, but his look of shock quickly melted into a soft smile. “Maybe. Definitely not here, but we’ll see.” Pidge felt her face heat up, so she frantically shovelled another piece of her lasagna into her mouth to avoid responding.

 

Later still, at midnight, Pidge walked out to the tree. She needed to do some serious thinking. The only problem was, the thing she was going to think about was sitting beneath the tree, doodling in the dirt with a stick.

 

“Keith? What are you doing out here?” Keith looked up to her with a thoughtful expression on his face. “I see you sitting out here all the time, so I figured it’d be a good place to think.” Pidge’s face flushed. He watched her sitting out there? Does he know she talked to the tree? Oh, god, what if he saw her reading books out loud to herself? Keith patted the spot next to him, and Pidge awkwardly filled the space. They sat in silence for a few moments. Pidge listened to his stick scraping the dirt. It droned on and on until it stopped. He wanted to say something, but he didn’t know how. Oh, Pidge had this boy all figured out.

 

“So, do you feel like talking about what happened with Krolia now?” Keith tensed next to her, but when Pidge placed her hand on his, he relaxed a bit. “It’s just…” He sighed. Pidge inched forward slightly, anticipating his words to be something either emotional, or a bit petty. Keith rapped his stick on the root next to him. “A week ago, Krolia told me why Acxa felt so familiar to me.”

 

The Green Paladin bit back her jealousy. Of course, it was about Acxa. Keith scanned the area for one second before continuing.

 

“She explained that before she joined the Blades and crash-landed on Earth, she was forced to marry a different species of alien. She, um, wouldn’t tell me what species. In any event, after two years of marriage, she fled to the Blades, leaving behind her husband, and...and her daughter.”

 

Pidge’s eyes widened in understanding. “Acxa is your half-sister.” Relief, then guilt for feeling relief. Keith nodded, blinking rather furiously. Pidge gently wrapped her arms around him. She rubbed his back while he sniffled softly for a few minutes. Eventually, he leant back and rubbed his eyes. “Thanks, Pidge.” She smiled nervously. “You don’t have to thank me. Your hugs are nice.” Keith stared blankly at the darkened building, watching Romelle sneaking some more lasagna through the window before he pulled Pidge to his side again. An alarm sounded in her head. _He’s intentionally hugging me. Why is he hugging me when he doesn’t have to?_ Keith still said nothing, just continued to stare at the Altean eating her midnight snack.

 

Pidge sat there too, staring at the ground. What was she supposed to do? Thunder cracked in the distance, and Keith’s grip on her shoulder tightened. _He’s just afraid of storms, right?_ A gust of wind blew through the area. The tree above them shook, branches clacking against one another. Pidge sucked in a breath. If there’s a time to do this, this is it. She faced Keith, butterflies gaining speed in her stomach.

 

The leaf fell.

**Author's Note:**

> romelle is me


End file.
